My MFB one-shots
by SilenceOnMars
Summary: Many one-shots, mostly focusing on fluff :) If you need cheering up, maybe this will help.
1. Balloon (Ryuga and Kenta)

One year.

It has been one year.

Nemesis has fallen and the earth is slowly rebuilding itself - the entire world continues to try to right its natural state, and the ecology and economy are slowly getting back on their feet.

In the face of such a time, it seems that all should lay aside their personal tragedies for awhile and centre their efforts towards rebuilding, restarting, and celebrating every precious moment of life they've been given.

But even as the children gather in the square a few blocks over, singing and dancing in celebration of the anniversary of the first year since the crisis, on boy sits alone.

Staring out a window, you can see his eyes are sad, alone on a window seat, lit by the dusty sunlight streaming in through the glass. While the others cheer and laugh in another room, Kenta is lost deep in thought, his forehead against the cool of a window and his eyes occupied by something outside space and time.

Because one year ago, he lost a friend.

One year to this day, he inherited a star meant for somebody else to have, carried on a legacy he never deserved. But it is not this that hurts him inside now. It is the loss of his mentor and hero, the very ruler of dragons himself and the only person he'd ever had to stand up so steadfastly to.

Ryuga now is just a memory, a star caught on a piece of metal, and a heart lost to a wonderful cause.

Kenta knows that he is gone, and Kenta knows that he is being selfish by thinking of his own losses at a time when this world needs him most. But every single day he goes on with an empty heart, rebuilds the soul of beyblade and the spirit of companionship and safety, but he feels like it's an act.

On this one day, he realises that he's had one year to mourn, one year to drag his feet and droop his eyes. It is time to move on. Time to reach out for the thing that consumes him most, the spirit of his sport, and help to set the world back to its proper state.

His footsteps mark an invisible trail down the sidewalk to a little stand on the side of the street. He buys two balloons. One is red and the other blue.

Nobody stops him as he walks back the way he has come with one balloon tied on each wrist. Vendors call out to him and a dog scrambles over his feet, but he does not stop to play with the other children. He continues steadfastly on his way.

He passes the apartment building where he lives. He passes his own block entirely. He keeps on walking.

And then three blocks down from his apartment, he stops.

There stands a little lot that used to be a paintball arena, with packed-down sand running across the concrete, and a little rusty shed lined with chicken wire where the kids on this block keep their bicycles. Here he can see the sky beyond the tops of the buildings, cloudless and freedom-blue.

Red for Ryuga. Blue for hope.

He releases the blue balloon first, watching it soar above him into the sky, trailing its way slowly until he can see it no more. This signifies the flying hope he has for the world to regain its balance and for everything to be all right again, for many new friends and countless adventures in the time to come.

And then he looks at the red balloon silently, bobbing in the soft breeze above his lifted wrist.

And then he unties the slipknot and it flies up, soaring suddenly as if it couldn't wait to be free.

He is letting go of his sorrow, letting go of everything that's kept him back this far. He will never forget Ryuga, but the past will no longer weigh him down.

He gazes up at the sky for a moment as the balloon slows its ascent, as if it is watching him to see if he will follow. And then it flies up, up, up, into the brilliant blue, until it is out of sight.


	2. Brother? (Ryuga and Kenta)

She was a waitress in a cafe. She didn't know any better.

We were passing through a small town we'd come across randomly, just a little village in the forest; I can't remember the name of it now. We needed supplies. I mean, we were doing fine on our own, but it was getting cold and we needed blankets to keep us warm.

I was tired. I admit it, I was exhausted. I did not feel like hunting or foraging or doing anything at all for a long, long time. So when Kenta headed in the direction of the little cafe I had to follow because I was too worn out to protest.

I sat down, I didn't say anything. Kenta pulled a wallet out of his pocket and went up to the counter to order something.

Then that waitress came up and said, "That's your brother? He's a little young to be ordering by himself, huh?"

I told her Kenta was old enough to handle it on his own. Then when she left my frazzled mind latched on to the words she had said.

I was overcome by adamance, then a little anger, and then suddenly...thoughtfulness.

I looked at Kenta with an open mind all of a sudden. Brother?

It honestly hadn't been so bad to have someone beside me for the last few days. But a brother? Kenta was hardly that.

Or maybe -

I ran through a list in my head. Kenta was loyal, concerned about me. He was a little annoying at times but he seemed to look up to me as well. Weren't these the traits of a brother, after all?

I couldn't say I would've chosen to have that kid follow me around like a lost puppy, but I had to admit that he was getting to me, bit by bit.

Kenta didn't choose to follow me because he thought I was anything special; he did it for Gingka. But I didn't tell myself that.

I have to admit that maybe I was waiting, wishing inside for someone to see me as something special. Somebody to look up to. To treat me as a friend and really care about me. Kenta wasn't my first choice. But now that he was here, what was the harm?

I realised with a jolt that if anything happened to him, I would be visibly shaken. I would be regretful. You could even say I'd be sad if he got lost.

Maybe, I reasoned, it would be all right to open up a little bit. Having someone to look out for wouldn't be so bad. Besides, Kenta was the kind of person who would stick up for you in the end. He was loyal and he saw me as a hero, I know that now.

So at dusk when I stumbled out of the village, barely able to stand on my own two feet, I kept glancing back at him to make sure he was still there. He was, every single time, with his new blanket slung across his shoulders.

And the next morning, when he gave me a rock he found at the river, I pretended not to care.

But the truth is, I kept it ever since.


	3. Clovers (Little Kyouya)

Random one-shot.

I just got back from Abilene and I didn't feel like writing for Breakaway because it's too intense...I need to let my words flow without thinking about the plot for awhile. I'm really really tired.

Also I can't write humour right now so I have no idea how this will turn out -_-'

Spinoff Breakaway.

Listening to:

Mika's song, by Yiruma, from the album Piano Museum, and Released, by Ryan Stewart, on the album Equanimity

Also I'll Smile, by Denise Young, on the album Something You Dream Of

* * *

There was a crack in the sidewalk where little clovers grew out, pushing valiantly against the concrete surrounding them. They held out bravely against the odds, reaching up to the sun in a fascinating show of strength.

How could one such obscure plant reach up and bare its leaves to the world when nature had other plans? How could such a small and strengthless bud as a clover reach out to touch the rays of the sun?

A mature adult could have wondered it, surely would have.

But they were not here.

The only one who was here was a little boy with spiked teal hair, crouching at the edge of the sidewalk crack and gazing at the little tiny field of clovers, lost in his own world for a moment.

Perhaps there were very very small men who lived amongst the stalks of the clovers, who shot their bows and danced around little fires and stole from the rich to feed the poor. Men who were so very small that they had not yet discovered the world of technology, and the clover stems rose like tree trunks high above their heads. Just like Noelle had told him at the orphanage that Robin Hood and his band of merry men lived in the Sherwood forest and fought for justice every day of their lives.

He swore that someday he would become like them, that he would perhaps sink to the background of the blading world, but he would always strive for the top, no matter what. And even if he didn't make it, perhaps he would act as an aid to somebody who could.

Nicole Thornsley, though blind, knew where the little boy was. She knew what he could see. She could sense it.

And Nicole knew that someday this boy would stand beside somebody who would make it higher than anybody could dream of; even if he never held that position himself, he had a good heart, and it would always act as an asset.

She knew not how yet, but she only knew that from hearing his voice, filled with light, honour, and courage, and hearing his footsteps on the ground, each filled to its brim with valiancy and meaning, he would grow to be somebody someday.

* * *

_"One day Robin Hood led his band of merry men out to the depths of Sherwood forest to look for something to eat. Sherwood forest did not run often with deer nor rabbits, and all that they could hope for was perhaps a squirrel and some roots to pass their hunger on for a while longer. For every bit of food they gained outside of what they found was given to those who truly needed it and had nobody to get it for them._

_"But lo, and behold, today was their lucky day! For a deer raced across the path at the very moment that Robin Hood himself turned and - with his quick thinking and great skill - he shot his last arrow as hard as he could._

_"Things seemed to slow to him as the deer leapt the path, and then the arrow pierced its side and it fell from its flight._

_"The men cried out. Oh, we'll feast tonight on this meat, they said. But Robin Hood said no, for when gifted with such wonderful bounty, one must always share it with others._

_"They brought it to the widow Mertague who lived on the edge of the woods, to feed to her 10 children, for she needed it more than they did."_

_Only one little boy remained awake at the end of the story, resting his hands on her knees._

_"Mrs. Thornsley, I still can't sleep."_

_So Nicole took him into her arms and sang to him._

_"Robin Hood, Robin Hood, riding through the glen_  
_Robin Hood, Robin Hood, with his band of men_  
_Feared by the bad, loved by the good_  
_Robin Hood, Robin Hood, Robin Hood_

_He called the greatest archers to a tavern on the green_  
_They vowed to help the people of the King_  
_They handled all the trouble on the English country scene_  
_And still found plenty of time to sing_

_He came to Sherwood Forest with a feather in his cap_  
_A fighter never looking for a fight_  
_His bow was always ready and he kept his arrows sharp_  
_He used them to fight for what was right."_

_The boy murmured as he drifted off to sleep: "Someday I will be just like Robin Hood..."_

_Nicole smiled and lay him down. "I am sure you will, my dear boy. I am sure that you will."_

Kyouya woke from the dream and gasped softly at the sudden memory.

That memory had eluded him in his years of wandering; he had tried to retain every memory from the orphanage, swearing that he would go back someday as he had promised himself.

And yet he hadn't, and might not.

He surveyed the unfamiliar room. He lay in a small bed in the basement of a repair shop, with his arms bandaged and almost no recalling of how he had gotten here.

Then he remembered. He had battled with Gingka Hagane under the influence of the DNA and was in the basement of Madoka's workshop.

Then with a jolt, another memory from the orphanage came to him;

Clovers.

Clovers had grown up through the crack in the sidewalk, and he had been there.

Now he remembered how the clovers had been so brave to stand up to the harsh landscape of the concrete, reaching for the sun no matter what the cost.

The self same sun now rose above the windowsill nearby, and he gazed at it dreamily. What had happened to his childish innocence after all these years? Where was the person he had once been inside, so full of imagination and noble purpose?

_People can change._

Nicole had told him this a long time ago, when he had been pushed down by the bigger boys in the courtyard. _People can change if you give them a chance._

_Give yourself a chance. If they don't change to be nicer, someday you will change to be stronger and use your strength for a greater purpose than they are. You will help others rather than hold them down._

What had happened to that proverb? What had happened to all the other proverbs he'd been certain to live by ever since he was a small child?

He'd not deserved to be taken in by such a caring orphanage; many were positively feral. He'd not deserved to be treated to such helpful wisdom from a wonderful woman such as Nicole. And yet he'd gotten those gifts and more.

Maybe people could change. Maybe it was time to give himself a chance. An opening.

_"Someday I'll be just like Robin Hood, Mrs. Thornsley."_

_"I'm sure you will. I am very sure."_


	4. Starry Night (Tsubasa)

For thewizardofoddness's contest.

Da feels XD

* * *

_Stars shine high above me now_

_Make a wish and whisper low_

_Sky's the only one who hears_

_Moonlight hides the worst of tears._

It had been another long day. Standing outside his apartment building under a full moon, with snow chilling him up to his ankles, Tsubasa dreaded the chaos that undoubtedly awaited him inside; Gingka and Masamune had been home alone all day with Yuu, now that it was flu season. Surely there would be some sort of mess when he stepped inside the door.

_When I've got nowhere to go,_

_Who can comfort? Who can know?_

_Is there a single soul who cares,_

_Besides the voiceless chilling stars?_

Sometimes he wondered if anybody really knew the effort he made to keep things organised around here.

Before the World Tournament, before he'd become part of a team, he'd worked solo; on his own, there was nobody to criticise or depend upon him. But now the world seemed to be hitching a ride on his shoulders.

_Shadows go across the moon _

_Don't you cry, I'll be home soon_

_Even if you don't see me,_

_I see you._

He dawdled outside like this most nights. Even though the snow sometimes seemed unbearably cold in the winter months, and the moon above him was unforgiving, it helped him to have a little time to wait before facing the next challenge.

A little face smushed itself against the window high above him briefly, and he winced at the smudges it would leave; then he could hear faintly the sound of a little boy calling out, 'Tsubasa's home!'

_Window in the sky tonight_

_Moon of silver shining bright_

_Stars like eyes, watching, caring_

_Glimmering orbs from sky heights staring_

Tsubasa smiled slightly to himself and crossed the threshold into the apartment building; soft light and warmth in the lobby washed over him, and he kicked the snow off his shoes. It settled into the straw on the worn welcome mat, melting already beneath the apartment's trusty heater.

The elevator dinged as it hit the bottom floor; its doors opened and he stepped inside.

_Even when I am inside_

_Even when it isn't night_

_You'll never ever be alone - _

_I've got the stars to guide me home._

Pressing the button for the top floor, he shut his eyes and let the movement of the lift lull him into peace; he knew the others would be waiting. Dinner would not be ready, and the apartment would not be clean. But it would always be home.

At last the elevator ground to a soft stop, and the doors opened once more; dusky beams of light from the hall fell across the threshold of the elevator, and he crossed over and took a right, his footsteps guiding him along the familiar path.

_Even when I'm feeling sad_

_Being home can make me glad_

_Even when it's dark and stormy_

_I know you'll be waiting for me._

The door opened in front of him before he could reach out for the knob; Yuu bounced up and down just below his line of sight. "Tsubasa, Tsubasa! Is it cold outside?"

"Yes, it is", he told the little boy, smiling as Yuu grabbed his hand excitedly. "Is there a lot of snow?"

"Almost 5 inches."

"We can have a snowball fight!"

"When everybody gets over their colds you can."

_Your face is a light in the room of my mind_

_I don't have the heart to leave you behind._

_Though the path ahead veers left and right_

_The stars will take me home tonight._

Yuu bounced farther into the apartment; Masamune and Gingka sat head to head on the couch, yelling at each other over the video game they were playing, sneezes perforating their challenges. Tsubasa let Yuu help him with dinner and pried the boys away from their game long enough to eat.

At last everyone got tired out; the three younger boys fell asleep on the couch, leaving Tsubasa with a blaring TV and the dishes undone.

He smiled to himself as he cleaned up.

_Though it's difficult to keep my head_

_I'll spend each night in my own bed._

_There's a lot of long, hard nights and days_

_But I'd have it no other way._

_I've got this place to call my own - _

_My footsteps always lead me home._

Yes, perhaps it was chaos and perhaps it was unfair, but this place was home to him, and that would never change one bit.


	5. The Last Roar (Kyouya character death)

Here's a track you can listen to on YouTube while you read this:

Cristofori's dream, by David Lanz

* * *

It was nobody's fault. Not as far as I can see.

But why do we all feel like we were the ones to blame?

They told us it was an accident. But I guess we're in denial. Because none of us - none of us that were there - can shake the guilt.

Maybe if we'd been faster. Maybe if I'd stopped to see if he was behind me. Or maybe if we'd not been there in the first place. But it's done. We can't bring back what we lost.

It was just a normal day in Japan in the winter time; DeMorae and I had gone to visit Kyouya and Benkei there because we'd never seen snow before. It was Benkei's idea really. But we were excited all the same.

So Benkei had said that he and Kyouya were going to show us around Metal Bey City; Kyouya was never enthusiastic about these kinds of things, but he had allowed himself to be dragged along all the same. So there we were, just in the streets of Metal Bey City, exploring like the 4 senseless teenagers we were.

Kyouya was only fooling around when he said we should check out some of the abandoned buildings downtown. It could have happened to any group, but there we were, and fate chose us that day.

What could it hurt? We were bladers. We were strong and we got really far in the World Championships. We felt like we were ready to face anything. We were wrong.

It was a tall building, about 17 stories or so, an old office building that had long been abandoned. Kyouya and Benkei said they hadn't any idea why. But in any case, it was an explorer's playground. And so there we went.

It was fun for awhile. Crossing beams and stepping across perhaps unsteady floors - we were lucky they didn't come crashing down under our weight. But soon we got tired of the activity and after checking out the 13th floor, we decided to go find dinner at one of the cafes nearby.

There was one last thing we had wanted to accomplish there, though. We wanted to have a rooftop battle. That was the thing; if only we hadn't done that we may have all gone out for dinner after all, and we'd still be a team of four today. But as it so happened, we did, and we didn't, and now we just...aren't.

It was DeMorae's turn, and he chose to battle Kyouya. He wanted to battle on the big platform in the right corner of the roof, up on top of some of the big pipes going down into the rest of the building.

Beybattles stir up heat, from the friction in the tips, especially if it's not on a designated surface like a platform on a roof. Or, as it turns out, a gas line cover.

Nobody had cleaned out the gas pipes when the building was abandoned, and so the story tells itself. Kyouya and DeMorae built up so much friction that the platform went up in flames.

We all just stood there for a minute, honestly, once DeMorae and Kyouya had jumped off the platform to the other edge of the roof where me and Benkei were. And then Benkei yelled, "Run, the fire will spread quickly through the gas lines!" And so we ran.

Did I mention how old this building was?

Every bit of that structure was like a piece of dry tinder, ready to be lit by the slightest thought of a match. The fire spread over the entire roof once we were out, and as we ran down flight after flight of stairs, I could feel the heat on my back, and I was in the front.

We could have gotten out. We were fast enough and we were strong enough; the building's path downwards was straightforward enough that we should have been to the bottom in time. But I guess a stair or two was missing, and a couple of us stumbled, slowing us down.

We got to the garage and it was already engulfed in flames. I could hear footsteps behind me. Now, looking back, I realise it was probably only two sets of footsteps by that time. But I didn't hear it until it was too late.

I could see the garage door open in the front of the room, and we burst out into the cold gasping and relieved. I turned around and Benkei and Demorae were already out.

For a moment of panic, Kyouya didn't appear. But then we saw him stumbling through the doorway in the back, tears cutting through the ashes on his face, coughing to no end. We were relieved to see him.

He didn't make it two steps before the garage collapsed.

I heard screaming and realised it was Demorae. Benkei was running back towards the building, and he barged his way through the flames just like a bull. He was the only one of us brave enough and quick-thinking enough to save Kyouya at a time like that.

I swear neither me or DeMorae breathed for the entirety of his absence. And then he burst back out in an entirely different spot with Kyouya bundled up in his arms, coughing. The thing that worried me, though, was that Kyouya wasn't coughing anymore. I had no other way to tell if he was still breathing.

Benkei fell on his knees on the sidewalk and Kyouya fell to the ground. Me and Demorae gathered around them, leaning over Kyouya, and he opened his eyes; I swear, if I've never admitted it to anyone else, I nearly cried right then and there.

He was reaching up his hands as DeMorae grabbed my cell phone from my hand and started to dial emergency services; and he looked up at ma and all he said was:

"Nile. Take care of the team for me, buddy."

And then he shut his eyes and I didn't want to believe it then, but I knew he'd never open them again.

The ambulance got there, but by then it was too late.

Since then we've brought Benkei back to Africa with us. He's too emotionally damaged to make it on his own.

It's like, any day now, we expect him to come walking through the kitchen door and yell at us and demand why we all left Japan without bringing him along, like he'd been alive and playing a joke on us all this time. But we know it's not going to happen.

Kyouya's gone, but he left this team in his place. He left us to carry on his blader's spirit. I could swear that every time we battle there's a little bit of lion strength in us, like he's still living on in our hearts.

And if you look at us battling that way, in all truth, you could say that that lion never died. I guess he's still here, and it's our responsibility to make sure that he's never forgotten.


	6. Better in Stereo (Wales and Sophie)

This chapter will follow Sophie and Wales.

* * *

_~Sophie's POV~_

_Think of you_

_You're the other half of me_

_You're the better part of me_

_The passion there will always be._

When you separate twins, it's like splitting a soul in half.

You and I are identical. I miss you. I look out the window of Papa's house in France and I see your face in my reflection for a second.

This is a wide open space and it makes me feel smaller. When we were together for that short sweet while during the World Championships we were two and the world didn't seem quite so big to me anymore.

But the road took us different ways.

_Split apart like puzzle pieces_

_North and South and East and West and North-north-north-west_

_Until there was no direction_

_Only chaos_

There are no pictures of me on my camera. There are no pictures of you. There are only pictures of the two of us together because before you went away to school we were never apart.

I am not Sophie. You are not Wales. We were always Sophie And Wales. Wales And Sophie. Until now.

We shared bedrooms for the longest time. We shared a phone. We shared a life. A soul. Everything. When conceived, we were one cell that split and split and split until it became us, but we were always connected in a deeper sense than physically.

This explains why I feel that half my brain is ripped out. I'll get used to it; I did before and I will now.

~Wales~

_I could take half the world_

_I could take the whole galaxy_

_The rolling hills and the constellations and the mysteries beyond_

_but if you weren't there I'd give it all away to get you back._

This school is dark and dreary. I was happy here before, but after the championships...after that it all changed.

I miss you, I always missed you while I was here, but more now than before. We made so many new friends and went new places and it knit us together closer than before. Before I thought it was unbearable. Now I think I'm going to die.

I'm not used to sharing a room with a room mate; when I look across at the twin bed where he sleeps, I keep expecting to see you. You and your always-tangled hair because you continually refused to braid it before bed.

_There's an empty space in the right side of my heart_

_the right side_

_You were a part of me_

_You still are._

I am homesick, sick, sick. The stone ledge by the window is cold and perspiring, soaking through my pyjamas. I almost didn't go to school, but you told me not to stay on account of you. I feel so selfish. I could get a plane ticket back. You could tell me to come home.

Just say the word, Sophie, and I'll come home.

You call me every morning when you wake up and every noon to see how I'm doing and every evening before bed. I dream about you. I dream that you're here and then I wake up and my heart just breaks.

_Miles can't go the distance_

_Seas can't go as deep nor skies as high_

_And lightning nowhere near as fast_

_As I'd go to come back to you._

I talked to you only six hours ago before I went to bed. I'll talk to you in another six when you wake up. And still I feel like I need to see you, now.

Just say the word. I'll come home.

~Sophie~

You told me before you left that if I needed you, if I needed somebody, to tell you. And you would come home no matter how you had to get here. But I can't do that, because I know you would, and I know you can't.

_How far is love willing to go?_

_Do I love you enough to bring you home_

_Or enough to let you go?_

_Which goes further?_

There's a quilt here but I feel cold. I feel like I'm about to cry. I survived many battles but I can't stand being alone. Even when your dog is here she doesn't calm my soul. I hold her at night when I'm lonely and I listen to her heartbeat.

I could take money from my savings and get a ticket and go, go, fly to London and find you. It wouldn't take much. I've flown on my own before.

I sit up in the dark and turn to the bureau, the one against the wall between the bed where I am and the one with cold, empty, neat sheets. I open it. There is just enough money to fly to you.

But why can't I be strong and wait until holidays come? It seems like when I need you more than ever I lose you faster than I can think.

You left parts of you behind. You left that box of toys in the closet and your dog, and you left about half of your clothes (which isn't very much) and two posters on the walls. You left a framed photograph behind of the two of us standing in the airport grinning, excited to be finally off and together at the world championships.

I pick up the photograph. Your face in the picture is small and blurry and fake; it's nothing like you at all.

A corner of the backing is loose. I turn over the frame to tighten it, but the little latch is broken off. I shake my head. Just like you, Wales, to use an old broken picture frame.

~Wales~

Look behind the picture, Sophie, I urge you in my mind. If twins have telepathy I'm counting on you now. Look behind the picture and I swear this problem will be solved.

~Sophie~

_Missing someone_

_It's like the top of your head is torn off_

_Some call it poetry_

_I call it pain._

A corner of white is sticking out from the edge of the backing. You idiot. You bought a picture frame and didn't bother to remove the sample picture or fix it when it got broken.

My obsessive side absentmindedly unlocks the backing to straighten the photograph inside and I see that it's not a sample page behind it, but a folded piece of paper. A note or something. My hopeful mind jumps and I unfold it.

~Wales~

_This room is full of objects and empty of soul,_

_this rain is full of sadness and empty of refreshment_

_This heart is full of loneliness_

_and my mind is empty of everything._

Just look behind the picture.

~Sophie~

At first I don't comprehend what I'm seeing. It's superman, it's a bird, it's a...plane ticket. To anywhere.

I can go to London! I don't know why this is here. If you put it here or if it got here some other way. My heart soars and I open the bureau. I open a suitcase and within minutes, it is full. Nothing will stop me from coming to you, not if such an opportunity rests at the ready in my hands.

Papa doesn't need to know. He's gone. Nobody will tell him. I go off on my own all the time.

You taught me how to climb out the window. I still remember.

_I'll make ladders of stars_

_I'll fly_

_I'll run and I'll swim oceans_

_And I'll be there soon._

~Wales~

I open up my laptop to the desktop I set, of the two of us in the airport at Italy, taken shortly after we arrived. We were so happy.

When I can't sleep I get on the laptop and I read our blog until I'm in tears of laughter from our cheesy posts. I often wake my room mate, who throws pillows at me until I shut up.

A notice pops up in the corner of my computer screen and suddenly I am dizzy. The screen swims. I set this laptop to tell me if you used the ticket, if it checked in with the airport, is this the notice?

It is.

_I'll jump_

_I'll cry_

_I'll cry for joy_

_I'll see you soon._

I whoop loudly. I can't help myself. The sound reverberates off the walls and Charles wakes up. His dictionary narrowly misses my head.

I don't care. I don't care if he slaps me with a red-hot iron, I don't care if I get detention. I climb out the window, I still remember how.

I will be there when you get here. I will never let you go again, I promise myself. Waiting hurts too much.


	7. Gone Too Far (Madoka)

This chapter and the last were originally posted in Woodwork. I would like to dedicate both of them to several of my very best friends, whom I don't see or communicate with very often. Miss you, guys.

The song Stars belongs to Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.

* * *

~Madoka's POV~

_I lit a fire with what you left behind_

_And it burned wild and climbed the mountainside_

It's so unnaturally quiet here.

Dad's busy as always in the shop, but I got so used to having Gingka and the others here with me that the silence is making my hair stand up.

_I followed your ashes into outer space_

_I can't look out the window, I can't look at this place_

For awhile it felt like I couldn't breathe.

I'm worried about them all. Ryo sent a team out to work on rebuilding, somewhere close to Nagoya I think; we haven't heard back from them yet. It's been two weeks.

Tsubasa, Gingka, Chris, and King led some other bladers out to recover survivors. I have no reason to be worried. I know they can be responsible if they try. I know they've faced worse. After Nemesis, what does anyone have to be afraid of anymore? But it doesn't stop me from worrying. Gingka is reckless sometimes. I hope he doesn't lead them into danger.

_I can't look at the stars_

_They make me wonder where you are_

It's cool out tonight, and I sit by the window on the first floor of the B-Pit. I can hear Dad in the basement, throwing stuff around.

There are so many things I wonder that I have no way of knowing. Where are they? What are they doing? Who have they saved so far? Are they all still all right?

Many times in the past two weeks I have been tempted to rent a car from the dealership and head off towards Nagoya on my own, but I know I can't do that. My place is here.

There are so many bladers who need help right now, people whose beyblades couldn't handle the star force zipping through them. Not all of them are strong like Gingka. Dad is swamped with customers and if I leave he will have nobody to help him.

_Stars, up on Heaven's boulevard_

_If I know you at all, I know you've gone too far_

_I_

_I can't look at the stars_

The thought is still tempting.

I could easily have gone with them, but what would I do? I can't use a beyblade to save my life, much less other people's. I don't have the strength to lift fallen doors and walls and bladers. I'm no use as a medic. It is best to step back for awhile and let them do their job.

Sometimes I regret not having learned to beyblade, like the others did; instead I was too obsessed with maintenance, like Dad. But often-times it turned out for the better.

_All those times we looked up at the sky_

_Looking out so far, it felt like we could fly_

That journey unfurled my wings too far. I should be happy to be back here with Dad and at home, instead of out there.

I used to not like adventure as much. When someone got hurt, I would panic inside. When two bladers started a fierce battle and yelled at each other, I would get upset. How have I changed so much? I feel like a piece from the wrong puzzle.

_And now I'm all alone in the dark of night_

_And the moon is shining, but I can't see the light _

Dad clomps up the stairs with his big shoes. "Whatcha lookin' at?" He comes to the window and sits by me.

"Nothing. I was just thinking about something."

"Little girl, you are always thinking. What about?"

"I miss my friends. I'm worried about them."

_I can't look at the stars_

_They make me wonder where you are_

"So your old Papa wasn't enough company for you?" He teases.

"No, Dad, I just worry that they got into trouble out there or something."

"I bet they're out there wondering the same thing about you."

I have to smile.

"Look up there, little girl; what do you see?"

_Stars, up on Heaven's boulevard_

___If I know you at all, I know you've gone too far_

"The constellations."

"Which ones are out tonight?"

I count them silently. Orion, Pegasus, Taurus, Aries, Pisces, Cetus, Aquarius, Cancer. I can't see them all from where we are, but I know they're there in this Autumn season. I recite them by heart, and Dad nods.

"Chris, Gingka, Benkei, Hyouma, Ryutaro, Sophie, Wales, Hikaru, and you, little girl. Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't those your constellations up there?"

"Yes."

"Each of you has a beyblade. Each beyblade holds a piece of the constellation in it. You're all in the same sky, Madoka, and you're all connected. You're not alone."

"I don't have a connection with my beyblade like the others do."

"Hm. Cancer, or Gasher, is normally a beginner's bey. Right?"

I nod.

"But it's still up there. It may be a pretty small constellation, but it's got its own part of the sky like all the others."

Dad stands and kisses the top of my head, and then he leaves.

I know he's right. I smile. Dad always cheers me up.

Somewhere, I know, the team will look up at the sky tonight, and they might not think of me. But I'll be there. And even in the daytime, the stars are there; we just can't see them. That's the way it is with the team. We'll always be together even if we're miles apart.


End file.
